Man Leaves Jail after Waiting Too Long to Turn Himself In

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WOODLAND-

It was in the lobby of the Yolo County Jail where detectives say 25-year-old Mario Lopez turned himself in and was asked to wait in the lobby but, 14 minutes later, Lopez got tired of waiting and walked out.

“Our records clerk had contact with him at the counter. They confirmed he had a warrant. They notified the staff in the back,” Yolo County Sheriff’s Captain Robin Faille.”At that time he came in, it was right at our shift change. We also had incoming. Two jurisdictions had two arrestees.”

Only one arrestee can be held inside for search and questioning at a time and that can take hours.

“And the other one was waiting in the car for their turn to come in,” Faille said.

Woodland police say Lopez is linked to more than 100 burglaries that plagued the city and Yolo county late last year.

In January, Lopez was arrested, but shortly after his release police believe he burglarized more homes and vehicles prompting another warrant.

“He has been known to have firearms. That is why we warned people technically he is armed and dangerous,” said Sgt. Brett Hancock with the Woodland Police Department.

Detectives worked closely with informants to find Lopez and get him to turn himself in.

At Yolo county jail, those who voluntarily give themselves up are not expected to walk away.

“Prior to this we would not make somebody surrendering a priority because our intent is to get the officers back out on the streets as quickly as possibly,” said Faille.

Now the jail says all arrestees, especially those who surrender, will be booked and processed with top priority.